Wednesday, January 29, 2020

Disaster in Franklin County Essay Example for Free

Disaster in Franklin County Essay Section A. The Emergency Operations Center (EOC) has a large Chain of command. At the head is the EOC Commander, who receives information from the other parts of the chain, and is responsible for relaying that information to other agencies, and also the Homeland Security agency (formerly Federal Emergency Management Agency). The Safety Officer is in charge of making sure safety policies are followed, and also for relaying what safety equipment might be needed. This person also keeps track and investigates injuries reported as a result of rescue operations. The Liaison Officer answers questions and provides briefings for the other agencies during this emergency. This person is the main point of contact for other agencies. This role takes the pressure off of the agency commander, diverting attention and questions to the liaison officer. The Public Information Officer gathers together the proper health information needed and ensures that the public is informed of pertinent health information specific to the emergency. This person also ensures that everyone has the same information and is aware of which information is to be disseminated to the public. The Legal Officer will ensure that the legal aspects of emergency operations are followed. This will include following and enforcing the contractual obligations of several different agencies involved in this emergency event. The EOC coordinator will coordinate all of the command staff, and ensure that each one is performing adequately, and assisting each unit as necessary in obtaining or completing required tasks. The next tier of command includes the Operations Chief, the Logistics Chief, the Financial/administrative Chief, and the Planning/Intelligence Chief. The Operations Chief will develop, organize, and carry out the incident objectives. Such objectives will include which areas to search, or survey, and which assets and field resources are utilized. The Operations Chief will supervise each team and area, utilizing the resources effectively. Theà ‚  Logistics Chief does exactly that, takes care of logistics. This can consist of finding equipment needed for health workers, emergency personnel, or finding space to put refugees and pets. The Finance and Administrative Section Chief plays an important role in tracking finances, expenditures and tracking both resources on hand and resources that have been distributed during the emergency. This enables the department to be aware of supplies that are low and allows for the department to request needed items from outside sources. This section also ensures that proper contractual processes are in place. The Planning Section Chief gathers information, analyzes the information, and then manages the information gathered, ensuring that all of the sections of the incident responders are informed of everything happening with each section of the response. They then compile the Incident Action Plan. The last tier of the EOC group is the individual Public Health Organizations. This includes the Community Services Branch Director, the Medical/Health Branch Director, the Fire Branch Director, the Public Works Branch Director, and the Law Enforcement Branch Director. Each director forms their own Chain of Command similar to the EOC chain of command for their own department. Each director is in essence the EOC commander for their particular department. The Public Health Nurse serves under the direction of the Medical/Health Branch director (United States Department of Labor, n.d.). Section B. Public health personnel played several different roles in this disaster scenario. The command structure is the incident commander on the first tier, the public information officer and the liaison officer on the second tier, and the third tier consisting of the operations chief, planning chief, logistic chief and finance/administration chief finishing out the third and last tier. The Public Health Nurse is not listed on the departmental command structure. The Public Health Nurse will analyze the incident and apply nursing judgment to public health needs for the incident. In the disaster scenario, the nurse needed to be aware and ask for needed resources such a s potable water and sanitation, as well as vulnerable populations in need of home oxygen, needed medications for various co-morbidities such as hypertension and diabetes, and environmental hazards brought about by the natural disaster, such as the possibility of typhoid, cholera, possible mold exposure. The Public Health Nurse will also conduct interviews with the affected population, access and populate  information to be relayed to the Public about direct and/or possible health hazards and safety hints/tips to help keep the population safe. This may include public information sheets, information fairs, public meetings, and media interviews. The Public Health Nurse should also be aware of possible environmental hazards and which supporting agencies to contact in regards to the possible environmental hazards (University of Minnesota, School of Public Health, 2006). Section C. The community health nurse has many resources available to enable them to deal with situations outside of the community health nurse’s scope of practice. These include the Public Works department, for sewage, water, road management, building inspection, and environmental services. This department also has resource information available to the nurse for companies in the private sector. The public nurse will also have available to them the Fire and Police departments, which also include the State and County Police. The Fire department and Police departments have search and rescue teams available, which can include water, mountain, and land rescues. The Health Department also has resources for the Community Health Nurse, such as environmental inspectors, food inspectors, and resources available such as the Center for Disease Control (CDC). Available through Community Services Department are work crews, interpreters, and public buildings to be used as shelters (University of Minnesota, School of Public Health, 2006). Section D. The nurse utilized the resources available at the time to arrange for environmental health specialists to inspect residences and assist community members. The nurse also arranged for transportation to shelters, provisions and medications for those sheltering in place. The nurse also relayed information regarding hazardous waste cleanup and education concerning combustions engines and inadequate venting. The nurse was able to get information on the needs of the community at large and relay that information to the EOC task force to enable education and interpretative needs to be fulfilled (University of Minnesota, School of Public Health, 2006). Section E. The community health nurse was able to advise residents on depression and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) signs and symptoms, and was able to make referrals to community services for treatment of the possible depression and PTSD. The nurse was able to take the information gathered from the phone calls to facilitate news flyers for distribution to the community and churches on  what symptoms and behaviors to look for, and resources to help the affected residents. The nurse was also able to educate community members on health and mold issues, and to refer and send out a specialist to inspect potential hazards. The nurse notified 911 in response to a reported injury from a chemical spill that had been reported contained and cleaned up. The nurse then notified environmental specialists about possible contamination and chemical exposure near public parks and recreation sites. By facilitating the emergency response, the area was secured and helped prevent other possible injuries (University of Minnesota, School of Public Health, 2006). Techniques used to comfort, calm and educate the people consisted of empathy and an open approach. Active listening, non-confrontational empathetic concern relayed to the people that their fears were normal and were valid concerns. This approach made the people feel comfortable and facilitated open conversation between the nurse and the community members (University of Minnesota, School of Public Health, 2006). Section F. Nursing personnel can be prepared for large scale disasters by joining the National Nurse Response Team (NNRT). The National Nurse Response Team is a specialty team used in any scenario requiring hundreds of nurses to assist in chemoprophylaxis, a mass vaccination program, or a scenario that overwhelms the nation’s supply of nurses in responding to a weapon of mass destruction event (Public Health Emergency, 2009, para. 1). Nurses can also be better prepared for disasters by being prepared at home, as well as attending continuing education classes on disaster preparedness, as well as large scale disaster training and scenarios. References Public Health Emergency. (2009). http://www.phe.gov/Preparedness/responders/ndms/teams/Pages/nnrt.aspx United States Department of Labor. (n.d.). https://www.osha.gov/SLTC/etools/ics/what_is_ics.html#Information University of Minnesota, School of Public Health. (2006). https://cpheo1.sph.umn.edu/fcs/index.asp

Tuesday, January 21, 2020

The family is the biggest piece of the pie Essay -- Social Control Th

The key writers of social control theories were influenced by the mid 19th century conservative ideals, in which people were adhering to the unchanging state of affairs. Social control theorist viewed crime as normal behaviour that resulted from "the absence of effective beliefs that forbid delinquency" (Jones, 2009, p. 228). Rather than questioning why humans deviated and became criminals, social control theorist wondered why most people conformed and did not engage in criminal activity. With elements from several theories, including anomie, social disorganization and differential association, criminologist have argued that social control theory is not new (William & McShane, 2010, p. 157). These conservative criminologist were looking for alternative ways of explaining crime and deviance from the explanations they already had (Sears, personal communication, November 2, 2010). While there are several different perspectives of social control theory, for the purpose of this paper, th e focus will be aimed at Hirschi's social bond theory. First off, by introducing Travis Hirschi's theoretical premise and specifically highlighting his main arguments. Secondly, some examples will be provided on how this theory has been implemented and discuss an authentic program created by me which applies his theory. Lastly, the focus will be directed towards the effectiveness and the limitations that his theory has. The origin of Travis Hirschi's social control theory can be traced back to Emile Durkheim, who not only came up with the idea of anomie, he also talked about forces of integration and forces of regulation (Cartwright, 2010, p. 68). Forces of integration were described by Durkheim as being informal forces, and included peoples commo... ...be that it helps to eliminate the critique that parents could be the root of the problems (Sears, personal communication, November 9, 2010). Given that the 'old' ways eventually become eliminated form society, my program would provide proper parenting skills for all individuals in which people would learn Hirschi's core elements. In contrast, one weakness that haas been argued is that social control theories "over-predict delinquency and relegate motivation to a matter of minor significance" (Jones, 2009, p. 243). Also, it has been said that these theorist have made an unjustified assumption that all individuals are bound to partake in delinquent activities. Overall social control theories, particularly Hirschi's social bond theory, have proved to provide striking effects and perhaps that is why it is popular to both the general public and the policy level.

Monday, January 13, 2020

Employee Empowerment Essay

Employee empowerment is one of the management practices in today’s corporate business environment. It is a habit of allocating ideas, profit, recognition and control the costs with employees. According to the management theory of Kanter, mentioned by Rodriguez (2011) that by sharing power it will not only improve personal job satisfaction but also benefit the organization as a whole. The involvement and participation will allow them to gain greater job satisfaction and more committed to the organization’s goal (Lashley 2001). However, this management style also has some drawbacks like all leadership styles. One of the most important benefits of employee empowerment is the improvement in productivity in an organization. Employees who are empowered are more dedicated to the organization because of their active engagement. They are more responsible for the outcomes of their action, and better able to achieve job demands in an effective manner. In fact, commitment, accounta bility and the intention of fulfilling job demands are the qualities of an empowered employee (Kelleher, 2013). A satisfied employee will do their job successfully and also meet their personal target. Furthermore their responsible actions will make the success for the company and fulfil mutual commitment. That means by meeting personal targets the organisations economy is also boosted (Watson 2012). Engaged employees are dedicated to their job and have enthusiasm about their responsibility that means they love to do their duty. Another benefit is that empowered employee can have a great contribution to reduce the costs for an organization.For example, when employees have the authority to deal with customer complaints when they occur, and have the freedom to suggest a solution to the problem, that makes the employees self sufficient. This is efficient as it has less reliance on higher management approval (The Saylor foundation 2014). As a result, the organization encourages the employees to think creatively and critically which will allow them to communicate with their colleagues regarding the related problems and share innovative ideas, so it can cuts the cost of training and any overhead costs in some cases (Lashley 2001). For instance, a problem which can be easily solved by an empo wered employee could in other circumstances end up in court or compensation which could cost a lot of money for the company. The efficient use of resources by the employees can also reduce the cost. Even so, the work environment has a significant effect on how effective the employees can use the resources (Lashley 2001). The  three main desired aspects of work environment are, namely: undisturbed environment, easy accessibility and sufficient appropriate equipment to perform their job. For instance, comparing to construction work where people need protective uniforms for their job, in business there must have a computer network with Wi-Fi. These will make the employees independent and maximize the productivity of the company. The employees fell valuable and important, so there will be long-term employees who are loyal to the organization and this will reducing employee turnover costs (Owen.et.al.2014). However, the three main areas of concern regarding employee empowerment are as follow. Firstly, in a time of changing ownership or uncertain situation, it could make the decision making process lengthy (HE ATHFIELD 2014) because the rules and regulations can be different from previous as either the new management is coming or the condition is unstable where company might close down. Secondly, it could drive to disorder because the empowered employees have different solutions (HEATHFIELD 2014) for the same problem which may breach conduct according to the company policy. Thirdly, by empowering the employees the private information of the company become unprotected, this could damage the company if exposes because of the personal greed of the employees (HAMLIN 2014) while the information might be valuable to the competitors or it can create embarrassment. Though there are some disadvantages of employee empowerment, the increasing productivity and cost effectiveness can make this management style desirable for employees to work and mangers to control. Throughout the following paragraph the roles of mangers in past and present , will be discussed and how modern managers can apply these roles to find a possible solution for the problems faced by empowered environment. The role of the manager varies from company to company and time to time. However, the main responsib ilities are planning, organising, delegating, observing and evaluating (MURRAY 2014). In the past, the traditional style of management was disciplined and strictly following a chain of command. It was driven by the power of order(Gollakota,2014),but it has been developed over time.The modern managers support empowerment because it develops product and services more effectively, increases the satisfaction with colleagues, and overall it leads to create a unique place of work with advanced performance capabilities. SOURCE By applying these management skills modern managers can be able to make solutions for the  problems of employee empowerment.Fon instance, in a case where the ownership due to change and the situation is unstable,the modern managers can assure the employees about management support to recover the difficulties.Also,the managers should be able to make an adjustment(Liraz,2014) about the changes so that the employees are always up to date with the situation and sufficient training has been given to manage the situation with confidence. In an empowered environment where the solutions from employees varies from customers to customers, a modern manager can be mor e communicative about sharing the innovative thoughts and ideas by organizing frequent staff meetings with feedback.As a result, the employees are known from their colleagues about all the possible solutions to complains made by customers and also customers will have a choice. Also, there will not have any misunderstanding between the customers about the received solution from a company.Furthermore,though it seems impossible to protect a company’s secret information modern managers can use their initiatives with the help of technology.Such as, a special type of software called â€Å"content management† allows the employees to access the data according to the length of employment, to add on, DLP-Data Loss Prevention can be used for inspecting sensitive outgoing data in a company’s network (FORD 2011). Overall, due to the protection of data managers can closely monitor the activities of the empowered employees and also can make a law which will not allow to bring the personal technologies at work so it could ensure the safety of company’s secret information. There are different ways of developing the employees. For example, Managers have to be passionate about their job (SCHAPPEL 2013) because if they do not show any attention or spirit, they will not be able to motivate the employees to contribute to the targets. Also, managers should always have appreciation for the employees so the employees feel they are valuable to the company.HEATHFIELD (2014) states, as an employee they wish respect and favour to support their thinking. So managers should give recognition for an achievement, but if employees are likely to follow a wrong direction managers can resolve that with a positive attitude. Furthermore, HEATHFIELD(2014) says, managers could involve the employees in the decision making.For example, promotions of new product, or improvement meetings, which will make them feel more involved than in their usual job responsibility.Furthermore Schappel (2013) emphasised on how the  mangers can make the work place comfortable for the employees t o work .After allocating the task managers can observe the progress, also give guidance and support if needed. The managers can share the target and forecast with the employees. As they could have a better idea not only to support and share the target but also a possible solution for overcoming any difficulties that could occur. Moreover, by sharing thoughts they can make it achievable as a team (HEATHFIELD 2014) (SCHAPPEL 2013). To empower the employees is not an easy task because it needs a atmosphere of belief and cooperation from the management of a company ( Quast,2011).Also management should have the practice of welcoming any failure from the employees so that the lessons will help others in future development. Employee empowerment is considered to be the best way to keep customers satisfied, because the employees have the authority to take a possible solution for a situation and their main priority to keep the customer satisfied 11 (Quast,2011).Though this management style can be time consuming for some organizations because of the traditional frame of management and also the dependenc e on managers for every instruction,however, the creativity, teamwork,communication and innovative ideas from an empowered employee can help to achieve success and challenges from competitors. No referencein conclusion Reference list: 1.RODRIGUEZ, P,F. , 2011. Management Theory of Rosabeth Moss Kanter: Understanding Kanter’s Change model to benefit your company [online]. [viewed 21 April 2011]. Available from: http://www.business.com/management/management-theory-of-rosabeth-moss-kanter/ 2.LASHLEY,C.2004.Empowerment.Burlington.Elsevier Butterworth Heinemann 3.Kelleher.B.2013.Who’s sinking your boat? [Online video].[Viewed 24 Aug 2014]. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y4nwoZ02AJM 4 Watson.K.,2012.How Employee Engagement Can Boost Profits[online].[viewed 23 march 2012].Available from: http://www.yoursmallbusiness.co.uk/how-employee-engagement-can-boost-profits.html 5. THE SAYLOR FOUNDATION.,The Benefits Of Empowering Employees [online].Available from: http://www.saylor.org/site/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/BUS208-5.2-The-Benefits-of-Empowering-Employees-FINAL.pdf 6 Owen E and Richason IV.2014. What Are the Benefits of Practicing Employee Involvement & Empowerment?[online]. Available from: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/benefits-practicing-employee-involvement-empowerment-1842.html 7.Kristen Hamlin,2014.The Pro & Cons of Empowerment in an Organization.Available from: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/pro-cons-empowerment-organization-13397.html 8. MURRY,A.2014. What do Managers do? (The wall street journal)[online](Europe Edition)Available from: http://guides.wsj.com/management/developing-a-leadership-style/what-do-managers-do/# 9. Gollakota.S.2014.Traditional Vs Mode rn Management – Matrix Organization [online].Available from: http://www.citehr.com/200930-traditional-vs-modern-management-matrix-organization.html 10. Liraz.M.2014. How To Develop A Strategic Plan.[Online].Available from: http://www.bizmove.com/general/m6c.htm 11.Ford,J.,2011.The Leaky Corporation.[Online].[Viewed 24th February].Available from: http://www.economist.com/node/18226961 12. Susan M. Heathfield(2014). Top 10 Principles of Employee Empowerment[online].Available from: http://humanresources.about.com/od/managementandleadership/tp/empowerment.htm 13. SCHAPPEL.C.2013. 7 actions that create more effective managers.[Online].[Accessed 24 December 2013]. Available from: http://smartblogs.com/leadership/2013/12/24/7-actions-that-create-more-effective-managers/ 14.QUAST,L.2011. 6 Ways To Empower Others To Succeed. Online]. [Accessed:28 February 2011] .Available from: http://www.forbes.com/sites/lisaquast/2011/02/28/6-ways-to-empower-others-to-succeed/ AUOBLC. 2012. Overview of Kanter’s Theory on Structural Empowerment [online]. Available from: http://structuralempowerment.weebly.com/kanters-theory.html FORD, J. 2011. The Leaky Corporation. [Online]. [Viewed 24th February]. Available from: http://www.economist.com/node/18226961 KELLEHER, B. 2013. Who’s sinking your boat? [Online video].[Viewed 24 Aug 2014]. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y4nwoZ02AJM LASHLEY, C . 2004. Empowerment.Burlington.Elsevier Butterworth Heinemann HEATHFIELD, S, M. 2014. Top 10 Principles of Employee Empowerment [online]. Available from: http://humanresources.about.com/od/managementandleadership/tp/empowerment.htm

Sunday, January 5, 2020

3 Causes of Deindustrialization

Deindustrialization is the process by which manufacturing declines in a society or region as a proportion of total economic activity. It is the opposite of industrialization, and therefore sometimes represents a step backward in the growth of a society’s economy. Causes of Deindustrialization There are a number of reasons why a society might experience a reduction in manufacturing and other heavy industry. A consistent decline in employment in manufacturing, due to social conditions that make such activity impossible (states of war or environmental upheaval). Manufacturing requires access to natural resources and raw materials, without which production would be impossible. At the same time, the rise of industrial activity has done great harm to the very natural resources on which industry depends. In China, for example, industrial activity is responsible for record levels of water depletion and pollution, and in 2014 more than a quarter of the countrys key rivers were deemed unfit for human contact. The consequences of this environmental degradation are making it more difficult for China to sustain its industrial output. The same is happening in other parts of the world where pollution is on the rise.A shift from manufacturing to service sectors of the economy. As countries develop, manufacturing often declines as production is shifted to trading partners where the costs of labor are l ower. This is what happened to the garment industry in the United States. According to a 2016 report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, apparel experienced the largest decrease among all manufacturing industries with a decrease of 85 percent [over the last 25 years]. Americans are still buying as many clothes as ever, but most apparel companies have moved production overseas. The result is a relative shift in employment from the manufacturing sector to the service sector.A trade deficit whose effects preclude investment in manufacturing. When a country purchases more goods than it sells, it experiences a trade imbalance, which can reduce the resources needed to support domestic manufacturing and other production. In most cases, the trade deficit must become severe before it begins to have a negative effect on manufacturing. Is Deindustrialization Always a Negative? It is easy to view deindustrialization as the result of a suffering economy. In some cases, though, the phenomenon is actually the result of a maturing economy. In the United States, for example, the â€Å"jobless recovery† from the financial crisis of 2008 resulted in deindustrialization without an actual decline in economic activity. Economists Christos Pitelis and Nicholas Antonakis suggest that improved productivity in manufacturing (due to new technology and other efficiencies) leads to a reduction in the cost of goods; these goods then make up a smaller relative portion of the economy in terms of overall GDP. In other words, deindustrialization is not always what it looks like. An apparent reduction may in fact just be the result of increased productivity relative to other economic sectors. Similarly, changes in the economy like those brought about by free trade agreements may lead to a decline in domestic manufacturing. However, these changes usually have no adverse effects on the health of multinational corporations with the resources to outsource manufacturing.